366 



NEW ENGLAND FAIOIER, 



June 4, 1S30. 



NEW ENGL.AIVD PAUMER. 



BOSTON, FRIDAY, JUNE 4, 183 0. 



WATERING PLANTS. 



A copious 8ii|i|(ly of wiiter id very essential to a 

 good gunlen. Loudon rcrnaikd th:it ' iniiuy kitch- 

 en crops are lust or produced of very inferior 

 quality, for want of %vatf;ring. Lettuces uiid 

 cubhages are often hard and stringy ; turnips and 

 radishea do not swell ; onions decay ; caulillow- 

 epsdieoff; and in general in dry seasons all the 

 cruciferce, (flowers with petals in the form of a 

 cross) hecocnc stinted, or covercJ with insects, 

 even in rich, deep 8oils. Copious waterings in the 

 evenings, during the dry seasons >vould cause 

 that lulness and succulency which we find in 

 vegetables proiluccd in the low countries, and in 

 the Marsh Gardens at Paris, and in England at 

 the beginning and latter end of the season. 



' Watering is requisite for various purposes, as 

 aliment to plants in a growing state ; as a sup- 

 port to newly transplanted jdants ; for keeping 

 under insects ; and keeping clear the leaves of 

 vegetables. One general rule must ever be kept 

 in mind during the employment of water ; that is 

 never to water when the sun shine-. A mo- 

 ment's reflection will convince any one that this 

 rule is agreeable to the laws of nature, for during 

 rain the sun's rays are intercepted by a panoply 

 of fog or cloud.s. All artificial watering, therefore, 

 should be carried on in the evening or early in 

 the morning, unless it be confined to watering the 

 roots, in which case transplanted plants, and oth- 

 ers in a growing state may be watered at any time, 

 and if they are shaded from the sun, ihey may 

 also be watered over the tops.' 



The water used for watering vegetables, if 

 taken from a well or a cold spring, should be ex- 

 posed one day at least to the shining of the sun, 

 otherwise it will give a chill to the plants. Only 

 a small quantity should be ajiplicd at onco that it 

 mav have an ttfect similar to that of a refreshing 

 rain : for water applied too plentifully sometimes 

 washes away the finest of the mould from the 

 roots or makes little cavities about them, which ad- 

 mit too much air. 



TAR FOR SHEEP. 



A gentleman who keeps a large flock of sheep 

 assures us that during the season of grazing, he 

 gives his sheep tar at the rate of a gill a day to 

 every twenty sheep. lie |)Ut.« the tar in troughs, 

 sprinkles a little fine salt over it, and the sheep 

 consume it eagerly. This preserves tliem from 

 worms in the bend, promotes their general 

 growth, and is sujipoaed to be a specific against 



brush and apply the solution to the nii'f-s, &.e, 

 with care not to touch the leaves or buds. It 

 may be done at any time of the year, when wc 

 are most at leisure. Once in from two to four 

 years is generally sufficient. I have no general 

 rule, however, but wash them as often as they a\>- 

 pear to need it, which is always when the bark 

 is not smooth.' 



Messrs F. & J. \Vl^snlr, Proprietors of thi- 

 Hrighlon Nursery, near Koslon, say that 'fvc 

 years ago, we were oxrecdingly troubled with the 

 Apple tree Borer, having, at the same time, sever- 

 al thousand trees infested with them. VVc ap- 

 plied the wash, as recommended by B. VVmekl- 

 ER, Esi]. of Framinghain, and have continued 

 it every season since, the first week in Juno, in 

 pleasant weather, on from five to ten thousand 

 trees annually. The effect has been astonif hing ; 

 not only effectually preventing the destructive ef- 

 fects of the horfcr, but killing immediately the 

 moss, and destroying those other insects, usually 

 found impeding the goo<l health of the tree, also 

 resuscitating and invigorating every kind of tree 

 we have applied it to. We should recommend 

 as a general wash, one |)ound of potash to six 

 pints of water. And for promptness of execution 

 the mariner's long handled tar brush, which may 

 he had at the Agricultural Warehouse, North 

 Market-street, or the common paint brush will an- 

 swer. Every other year will answer as a remedy 

 against the borer, although the horticulturist will 

 find himself richly rewarded by a more frequent 

 application.' 



It will be seen that the solution of potash re- 

 commended by Messrs Wi.Nsnip, is somewhat 

 stronger than that which Mr Wheeler pre- 

 scribes. That of the former is one pound of pot- 

 ash to three quarts of water, and Mr Wheeier 

 advises two pounds to seven quarts. Whether 

 any advantage is derived from increasin^^ the 

 strength of the solution we cannot say. There is, 

 however, a difference in the strength of what the 

 chemists call the carbonate of potash, and a little 

 more or less of strength in the solution is probably 

 of little consequence. 



Mr Wheeler, in conversation a few days since 

 expressed an opinion founded on some experience 

 of the virtues of his wash, that it would preserve 

 trees against the canker worm, as well as other in- 

 sects. Should that prove to be the case, the dis- 

 covery will be of incalculable value, as the cank- 

 er worm, is, perhaps, the most formidable of the 



ning stream into wine by thro%ving grapes 

 ltd fouulaio head. — £</. A*. E. Farmtr. 



SAYINGS AS TO BEES. 



Is the following current in any other county 

 than in Norfolk? (EuglaniL) 



A flight in May ij worth a load of hay. 

 .\ flight in June is worth a silver spoon. 

 .\ flight in July Ls not werth i fly. 



GarcUncr^s Magazine. 



The above aphorisms are current in New Eng- 

 land, and have been so from 'time whereof our 

 uiemory runneth not to the coutrary.' — Ed. .V. E. 

 Farmtr. 



We have been presented with a Cultivator which 

 was invented by Isaac Cobb of Westminster, Vt. 

 which we think to be far superior to any other wc 

 have ever seen in use. It is intemlcd principally for 

 working in the drill, ami is eo constructed that the 

 share will cut up all the wee.ls between the rows, 

 and the harrow will rukc them out, and when 

 the harrow gets clogget it can be raised by a 

 handle for the purpose ui' clearing it without dis- 

 turbing the share ; there is a wheel through the 

 beam which governs the depth, which makes the 

 maijagement of the Cultivator more easy. One 

 of the above machines may be seen at the Agri- 

 cultural Wareliou.se, where they will be for sale. 



LARGE APPLE TREE. 



la answer to our correspondent, Mr Ives, page 

 343, we stated that there is on the farm of Cuas. 

 Tappa.s, of Brookline, an apple tree, which, one 

 foot from the ground, measures nine feet in cir- 

 cumfereuce. 



Salubrious qualities of the Slratcbeny. — Every 

 friend to the fair will he glad to diffuse the koow- 

 ledge of a pleasant dentrifice and infallible sweet- 

 ener of the breath. The coiimion strawberry in a 

 ripe state, when rubbed upon the teeth and gums, 

 has these most agreeable influences, and becomes 

 more efficacious if eaten freely. The celebrated 

 Linnaeus cured himself of gout by persevering in 

 a regimen of strawberries. 



Remedy for poiitoncd Animals. — Raw eggs giv- 

 en to sheep and cattle which have been poisoned 

 by eating laurel or ivy leaves, it is said, will effect 

 a speedy cure. The dose is, 1 egg for a sheep, 4 

 for a cow. They can be administered by simply 



insects which infest our orchards. We thiid<, breaking the shell and slipping the yolk and as 



COMPOSITION FOR GRAFTING. 



The following composition, we are asstired has 

 for some time been made use of by the Messrs 

 WiNSHip, at iheir valuable nursery in Brighton, 

 and by them preferred to any other. Three 

 |)arta rosin ; three parts I ees' wax ; one part tal- 

 low. Melted and mixed while hot. 



WASH FOR FRUIT TREES. 

 Tho very valuable wash lor fruit trees, recom- 

 mended by BE.vjAMm Wukelkr, Esq. of Fra- 

 mingham, .Mass. is as follows. ' Dissolve two 

 pounds of potash of the first quality in 7 quarts of 

 water fur the bodies of tho trees. If the lifid)S 

 are covered with moss or lice, I take a pninler'ii 



however, that further experiments should be madi 

 before it can be positively asserted that the mix- 

 ture obovc described will preserve against the 

 canker worm. 



much of the white as is practicable, down tho an- 

 imal's tliroat. 



PRESERVATION AGAINST INSECTS. 



This, it was supposed, could be eflected by bor- 

 ing a hole in the stem or branch of an infecteil 

 tree, filling it partly with quicksilver and plugging 

 it up. The destructive quality of this mineral 

 was expected to diffuse itself throughout the whole 

 striicturiTof the plants, and of course destroy or 

 offend the insects. But this exi>edient has been 

 found to bo completely nugatory. — Gardener's 

 Mafraxine. 



Some of our readers may recollect that plugg- March and April, and keeps till June. Tradition 

 ing up sulphur in trees has been pro'posed as « states the tree to be 130 years old. About tho 

 rcmcily against caterpillars and other insects, but | .v^""" l'^"- "'"' '"""'rc'l and one bushels of op- 

 found inefficient. The fact is that the means use.l I I'les were gathered from thcso 2 trees, exclusive 

 in such cases, are not adequate to the end pro- "^ windfalls. However incredible this may ap- 

 posed. Wo might as well attempt to turn a run- l'««'' '' ^an be prored. The trees are now on the 



rOR TBI NEW ElfOLAHO farmer. 



LARGE TREES. 



Mr Fessende.n — In tho town of Raynham, 

 in the county of Bristol, Mass. near my dwelling 

 house stand two apple trees ; the circumfe- 

 reuce of one is thirteen feet five inches one 

 fool from the ground, and twelve feet two inches 

 three feet from the ground ; the other tree twelve 

 iVet two inches one foot from the grouiul, and 

 eleven iVet six inches three feet from the ground. 

 The fruit is of n peculiar sort, in eating in 



